Improvement in si gn-holders



6 Sheefis-Sheet 1 V S. W. HOPKINS.

. Sign-Holder. No..2l8,883. Patented Aug.'26,1879..

[Zym' N. PETERS. PHOTO-LITHOGRAFHER, WASHINGTON, n C.

' 6 Sheets-Sheet 2. S'. W. HOPKINS.

. Sign-Holder. No. 218,883. Patented Aug. 26, 1879.

N. PEIERS, PHOTO-UTHOGRAPHER. WASHINGTON. C

6 Sheets-Sheet 4. l

S. W. HOPKINS.'

. Sign-Holder. N o. 218 ,883; Patented Aug; 26,1879."

N.PETERS, PKOTO-LITHOGRAPHER. WASHINGTON, D. C:

6 Sheets-Sheet 5.

s. w. HOPKINS.

Sign-Holder.

Patented Aug. 26,1879.

N PETERS. PHOTOJJTHOGRAPHER. WASHINGTON, Dr C which advertisements may thirdly, it willallow of the readyand instant removal of any one or more of the advertisingsigns and the substitution of others without UNITED, STATES PATENT QFFIGEF:

SIDNEY w. HOPKINS, on NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR To ANNA MARIA? HOPKINS, or SAME PLACE.

IMPROV EMENT I N SIGN-HOLDERS,

w Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 218,883, dated August 26, 1879; application filed December 27, 1878.

. To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, SIDNEY WRI T HOP j KINS, of the city of New York, in thecounty and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Sign-Holders and Advertising-Signs, of which the following is.

a full, true, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

My invention consists ofan improvement in sign-holdersand signs for advertising purposes,especially such as are intended to be attached and fastened to posts, pillars, col- ;umn s, or other vertical supports, and which are arranged to allow of the ready substitution of one advertisementfor another.

My'sign holder is so arranged that, first, it

i can be readily and quickly attached to a post or other upright support, and quite as readily and quickly be detached and removed theresame time exposeto view, anygiven number of advertising-signs, of any desired or fixed width orof different widths, upon each or all of be displayed;

disturbing any of its fellows, or without the necessity of either removing or disconnecting the sign-holder or anypart ofit from the post .or support towhich it isattached; fourthly, each and every advertising-sign is held in its proper place in the sign-holder, and securely locked therein by an apparatus which prevents I thealteration or removal of any of the adver- Q tising-signs which it contains without the use of the proper key; fifthly,the same apparatus which holds andseourely locks the advertising-signs in their proper places in the signholder at the same time also holds and securely locks the sign-holder in position on, and prevents its removal from, the post or other upright support to which it is attached without the useof the proper key; sixthly, it can be attached and permanently fastened to a post i or other upright support independent of the is partially withdrawn.

changeable one with another.

My invention will be clearly understood from the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 represents a perspective view of my signholder in position on the post or supportingcolumn, with the advertisements displayed thereon. One of the locking contrivances is opened and raised, and the other two are closed and in position, and one of the advertising-signs Fig. 2 represents an inside view, in perspective, of one of the three reversible skeleton embracing-frames, (which forms a section or one-third of my sign-holder when attached to the post,) with the advertising-signs and locking contrivances removed. Fig. 3 represents an outside view, in perspective, of one of the three reversible skeleton embracing-frames, showing the supportinggroovesor slideways into and between which the signs are drawn. Fig. 4 represents a top or bottom view of my sign-holder when attached to a post, showing the adjustable clamps by" means of which it is fastened thereto. Fig. 5 represents a perspective view-of one of the reversible locking contrivances, showing the retaining-lips and the hinge-hasps at each end. Fig. 6 represents a sectional view of one of the ends of the sign-holder, with the locking contrivance removed, showing the supportinggrooves or s'lideways into and between which the signs are drawn. Fig. 7 represents my adjustable clamp in perspective, showing the three supporting-arms, with the fasteningnuts or thumb-screws attached thereto. Fig. 8 represents one of the supporting-arms of the adjustable clamp, with the fastening-nut or thumb-screw belonging theretouuscrewed.

My apparatus consists, generally, of three reversible skeleton embracing-frames, triplicates of each other, and made of wood or metal, or a combination of wood. andmetal, or' other equivalents, and the vertical braces j j j, ppp, and t t t, placed at certain distances apart, and fastened to the series of horizontal framing-ribs y,which are placed at equal distances from each other, and are straight on the outside, and so shaped on theinside' as to form when put together a triangular or three-sided sign-holder.

The three reversible skeleton embracingframes A A A are kept firmly in their places when joined together around a post, and are.

prevented from shifting or moving upward, downward, or sidewise by the entry of the tenons 0 into the tenon-chambers w, as shown in Fig. 2.

On the outside edge of each of the horizontal framing-ribs y are the series of supporting-grooves or slideways k, as shown in Fig. 3, which are made of wood, metal, or other suitable material, and adapted to support the advertising-signs O O G, which are made of paper, glass, tin, iron, or other material, and adapted to slide in between any two of the supporting-grooves or slideways It, as shown in Fig. 1, the lower sign being practically withdrawn.

Hinged by the hinge-hasps n n to each end of both the top and bottom horizontal framing-ribs y of the three reversible skeleton embracing-frames A A A, and covering the outside vertical opening formed by joining them together, are the three reversible locking contrivances D D D, which are triplicates of each other, and are made precisely alike at both ends, of wood or metal, or both combined, or other suitable material, and are arranged to be opened and closed and fastened at either or both ends, and are adapted to grasp and securely hold and lock together the three reversible skeletonembracing-frames A A A, and, by means of the retaining-lips w, to hold in position and securely lock therein the advertising-signs O O O, as shown in Fig. 1.

At both the top and bottom of the reversible skeleton embracing-frames A A A, and at each end thereof, the hinge-hasps n a pass over the ends of the twin vertical staplebraces 19 p p, to which they are securely fastened by the double hooks r r r, and they also pass ovr the twin staples s s s, to which they are also fastened by the double hooks r r r, and securely locked in position thereon by means of the padlocks f f f, by means of which the three reversible skeleton embracing-frames A AA are more securely and tightly held together and in position against and around the post E, as shown in Fig. 4. Surrounding and at the same time tightly clasping the post or supporting-column E, one above'and the other below the sign-holder, are the two adjustable clamps g g, which are securely and firmly fastened in their respective places thereon by means of the bolts and nuts l l L. Extending outward from three sides of each of the clamps are the three supporting-arms h h h, to which the three vertical supportingbraces j jj are attached and securely fastened into position by the fastening-nuts or thumb-screws m m m, by means of which each of the three reversible skeleton-embracing frames A A A is separately and securely suspended from above and supported from below in its place against and around the post E, as shown in Figs. 1 and 4.

It will be seen that my sign-holder is reversible and also interchangeable one part with every other partthat is to say, each and every skeleton embracing-frame is reversible, and will fit each and every other skeleton embracing-frame when placed in position against and around a post, and each and every locking contrivanceis reversible, and will fit each and every place provided to receive one; and each and every clamp is reversible as well as adjustable and interchangeable one part with another, and will receive and support each and every skeleton embracing-frame, so that a sign-holder can be formed by placing together any three of the skeleton embracingframes without any regard Whatever to the top or bottom of either of them-that is to -say, as to which end shall be upward and which end downward when being joined together.

It will also be seen that advertising-signs of any specific or desired width, and also of different widths, either or both, can at the same time be used in my sign-holder-that is to say, advertising-signs can be used of any width that will admit of their being slid between and into any two of the slideways by simply covering any desired number of the intermediate slideways. An advertising-sign, for instance, might be used covering the entire face of one-of the skeleton embracing-frames by sliding it between and into the extreme upper and lower slideways and covering all the intermediate ones.

I have heretofore made application for a two-sided sign-board and I disclaim anything herein shown conflicting with that application. This sign-board differs from that in being provided with sign-holders visible from all sides.

What I claim as myinvention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. An advertising-sign holder formed by joining together, in the shape of a triangle,

three skeleton embracing frames, each of which consists of a series of horizontal ribs or plates and vertical supports, and provided with a series of slideways for the purpose of supporting alterable signs, slipped in longitudinally, and with three locking contrivances, each one of which is arranged to grasp vertically any two of the embracing-frames, where they are joined together at the ends, thereby lockin g the signs in position, substantially as described.

2. The combination of the three skeleton embracing-frames A A A, provided with signholding slideways 7c, fastened at each end by a vertical locking contrivance, D, adapted to embrace and hold together the three skeleton embracing frames A A A and to lock the signs 0 O C in position, the said locking conprovided with three equal sign-holding surtrivance being provided with locking-hasps angles firmly together and of preventing the and padlocks, substantially as described. withdrawal of the sign, substantially as de- 3. The'triplicate sign-holder here described, scribed.

faces, which are locked together, and the piv- SIDNEY HOPKINS oted locking contrivances, which embrace the Witnesses:

three angles of said sign-holding surfaces, S. F. SULLIVAN,

and serve the double purpose of holding said WM. J. SAWYER. 

